Option Focus | Nebius Sees Bearish Sentiment as Traders Buy Near-the-Money Puts Expiring July 2026 Amid Elevated Volatility

Option Witch
Aug 03

NEBIUS closed at USD 190.41, up 1.05 percent from the previous session’s close.

A distinctly bearish tone dominated NBIS options activity, with a standout $0.52 million put purchase on the 190 strike expiring in July 2026. The overall flow was overwhelmingly defensive, characterized by a concentration in long puts that points to strong hedging demand or outright downside speculation against a backdrop of elevated volatility.

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Options Indicators

NBIS is showing implied volatility of 143.95%, and with an IV percentile of 93.63%, its current volatility sits in a clearly elevated zone relative to its own recent history, indicating that options are priced expensively. The IV/HV ratio of 0.90 suggests implied volatility is slightly below realized volatility, but overall the market is still demanding very rich premiums, so outright option buying faces a high cost backdrop and premium-selling structures or defined-risk spreads may offer a more efficient way to position. The Call/Put volume ratio is 1.08.

Large Trades

A PUT buy worth $0.52 million was the standout large trade, with 2,500 contracts purchased on the 190.0 strike expiring on 2026-07-31. With the reference stock price at $190.41, this put was slightly out-of-the-money at the time of the trade, making it a relatively near-the-money bearish position. The buyer paid premium for downside exposure, indicating a view that NBIS could weaken meaningfully over time or a desire to hedge against downside risk into next summer. Because it is a long put, the strategic meaning is straightforward: the trader is seeking protection or speculative profit from a decline below the strike, with the $0.52 million premium representing the cost of that bearish exposure.

Overall, the large-trade flow in NBIS was clearly bearish. All tracked large trades were put purchases, with no meaningful bullish large-trade activity appearing in the summary, which points to a market tone dominated by downside speculation or hedging demand. The concentration in long puts, including the leading near-the-money July 2026 position, suggests traders were willing to spend premium for protection and negative directional exposure rather than positioning for upside. Taken together, the large-trade activity implies a distinctly cautious-to-bearish outlook on NBIS.

Strategy Reference

Given the expensive premium environment, a put seller eyeing a low assignment probability could consider the 130.00 strike, while a bearish trader seeking to define risk might deploy a put debit spread using the 190.00/170.00 strikes.

Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.

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